He hit his first major league home run in his first Angel Stadium at-bat to help the Los Angeles Angels beat the Cleveland Indians (in April, 2018).

The Japanese two-way player got the silent treatment from teammates when he returned to the dugout, but not from the crowd. After players broke character and jumped around Ohtani to celebrate, Mike Trout pointed to the field and instructed Ohtani to take a curtain call.

Ohtani is a particular species of baseball flower that’s never been known before, at least not in the last century: a right-handed pitcher endowed with breathtaking 103mph heat anda left-handed hitter who sprays balls into both gaps when he’s not tattooing them into the seats, all in one baby-faced, freakishly athletic 6ft 4in, 215lb package.

The expectations for Ohtani, whose two-way prowess years ago earned him the heady billing of Japan’s Babe Ruth, have been tempered somewhat after a rocky spring training that augurs a steep learning curve to success in the American major leagues.

☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★

The Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters of Japan’s Nippon Professional Baseball, the world’s top league outside of North America, drafted him despite the disclaimer and persuaded him to play domestically with a rare offer :

he could remain in the everyday lineup as a hitter on the days he wasn’t scheduled to pitch.

Shohei Ohtani is the best pitcher in Japanese baseball. He’s also the best hitter. And he could become MLB’s most dominant two-way player on a century.

He’s huge—built like a quarterback at six-foot-five, 220 pounds. He would be hard to miss even if hundreds weren’t awaiting him. As he nears the crowd, fans rush to the barriers erected to keep them at bay, where police officers straighten their posture and scan the assembled.

While the man walks briskly past, his eyes trained firmly ahead, the fans gasp and squeal and extend smartphones to take pictures. They do anything they can to get as close as possible, like he’s a Beatle returning to Liverpool.

The man keeps walking. And in his wake, all you can hear is his name: “Otani!

Shohei Ohtani is the greatest thing to happen to baseball in a century. He’s an athlete who, in 2016, was named the NPB Pacific League’s best pitcher and its best designated hitter—earning a 1.86 ERA in 20 starts and striking out 11.2 batters every nine innings,

while putting up a 1.004 OPS, launching 22 home runs and reaching base at a .416 clip across nearly 400 plate appearances.

He’s something baseball has not seen for lifetimes. He’s a modern day Babe Ruth.

Ohtani makes a habit of doing things no one else does.

“Hitting and pitching, it’s the only baseball I know. Doing only one and not the other doesn’t feel natural to me,” he says. “I suppose it’s an accomplishment—I’m doing what others are not. But, to me, this is just normal.”

☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★

🔵 Will he show flashes of brilliance?

The question is whether he will have the stamina, the depth of skills and the ability to adjust that will allow those flashes to turn into a well-rounded star over the course of a long season and career.

🔵 Which is more likely for Ohtani in 2018: hitting 20 home runs or winning 10 games?

Winning 10 games, easily.

Shohei Ohtani is off to a good start. The Angels’ potentially marvelous pitcher/hitter from Japan made his big-league pitching debut. The Angels plan to rest Ohtani the day before and after each start, so it might be hard for him to find a hitting rhythm.

Anyway,

If Ohtani continues to pitch like he did on the first game, he’s going to be in the Angels’ rotation for a long time. He might not be the Bambino, but Ohtani will be fun to watch. So far, so good😃

Shohei Ohtani’s profile

Shohei Ohtani (大谷 翔平 , born July 5, 1994) is a Japanese professional baseball pitcher and designated hitter for the Los Angels Angels of Major League Baseball (MLB).

He previously played for the Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters of Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB). He was the first pick of the Fighters in the 2012 draft. He has officially recorded the fastest pitch (103 mph).

◉ Height : 193cm

◉ Bats : Left

◉ Throws : Right

high school days ☆

A recounting of Ohtani’s exploits from his five seasons with the Fighters reads like plot points from a tall tale.